1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to golf tee holders and more particularly pertains to a new glove mounted tee holding system for providing quick and convenient access to golf tees on a hand of a golfer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A golf tee is a wooden or plastic elongate device, less than four inches in length, used for elevating a golf ball above the playing surface. The benefits of elevating a player's golf ball for distance shots has been recognized for some time-before the invention of golf tees, golf balls were placed on mounds of sand, taken from “tee boxes.” Modern golfers who follow the traditional rules of golf now use a golf tee to elevate their golf ball during the first shot of every hole. Because the golf tees are subject to extreme forces imparted by the head of a golf club, tees often break after use.
During game play, golfers can replace broken tees with spares that are stored in a compartment in a motorized golf cart or in a standard golf bag. These storage locations require the golfer to take the necessary steps to retrieve the stored tees when they are needed, however.
Golfers who desire access to a supply of tees on their person may maintain a collection of tees in a shirt or pants pocket. However, because tees are adapted for insertion into the ground with a sharp pointed end, storage in shirt and pants pockets can be uncomfortable. Not only are golfers subject to the hazard presented when tees pierce a pocket's wall, but they are also subject to injury incurred when the sharp end of a tee contacts a hand inserted into these storage pockets.
Furthermore, golfers who engage in the sport during inclement, wet weather must sometimes retrieve pocketed tees with a wet and soiled glove, imparting the moisture and dirt to the opening of the pocket.
With respect to these drawbacks, a number of tee holding devices have been devised. Specifically, implementations of tee holding devices have been created for attachment to golf gloves. The tee holding devices in the existing art, however, contain drawbacks that limit their usefulness by being bulky, awkward to use, complicated to manufacture and potentially hazardous to the user.
Prior to the instant invention, a number of attempts have been made to design tee holders that address the problems associated with storing and using golf tees. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,248 to Pommenville and U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,436 to Hoyt et al., devices for holding golf tees, pencils and other accessories are shown, featuring a clip to be received by a strap on a golf bag or on a golf shoe. The structures are such that one component of the device engages the surface to which the holder is attached, and the other component has some means for holding the tees.
U.S. Design Pat. No. 453,418 to Rippeon and U.S. Design Pat. No. 251,037 to Cudahy, III show golf tee holders with two major components-a tee holding component attached to a clip component, with the clip component frictionally engaging the material over which it is slid. These devices, when used in conjunction with a golf glove, impede wrist movement and add unnecessary bulk.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,272,412 to Antonious shows a carrier for golf tees and ball markers utilizing a flap which wraps around an object to which it is secured. This device is designed for carrying more equipment than golf tees, and is excessively bulky. The added structures for carrying ball markers also make this device more costly and complicated to manufacture.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,365,609 to Herzog and U.S. Patent Application No. 2002/0010956 show golf gloves with integral golf tee holding apparatuses. These devices are entire glove structures and cannot be attached to an existing golf glove. Thus, the tee holding apparatus must be replaced whenever the glove must be replaced.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,973,674 to Jackson, Jr. shows a glove-attached tee holder that consists of small elastic rings positioned on the side of the glove, opposite the thumb. This device is a modification to a golf glove instead of an attachment, and thus must be replaced when the glove is replaced.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,421,836 to Park and U.S. Pat. No. 6,205,588 to Shin show golfing gloves with attached tee carriers. These tee-holding devices are again integrated into the glove and are not removable or attachable to another glove.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,639,947 to Lanscioni shows a golf glove with a flap opposite the palm of the device for securing golf-related accessories. This device is not an accessory, but rather integrated into a glove.
In these respects, the glove mounted tee holding system according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of providing quick and convenient access to golf tees on a hand of a golfer.